Alleged victim in ex-Seahawk Chad Wheeler domestic-violence case: ‘My safety (is) at risk’
The girlfriend of Chad Wheeler fears for her safety, she says, because the former Seahawks lineman is free on bond awaiting trial for allegedly attacking and strangling her to the point she became unconscious.
The alleged victim in an incident inside an apartment in Kent Jan. 22 wrote a statement read in King County Superior Court on Monday in which she disagreed with the conditions of Wheeler’s release from King County Jail last week. The reading was at Wheeler’s arraignment on felony charges of domestic-violence assault, domestic violence unlawful imprisonment plus a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest.
Wheeler, 27, pleaded not guilty.
A trial is scheduled to begin April 6 at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent.
A judge last week issued a no-contact order between Wheeler and the alleged victim through March 8. Wheeler was released from jail Jan. 26 on $400,000 bond.
Girlfriend’s statement
Wendy Ross, criminal advocate supervisor with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office Domestic Violence, read to the court Monday a statement Ross said was written by Wheeler’s girlfriend.
“As you consider Chad’s custody status, I want you to know that I believe that as long as he is out of custody, I am not safe,” the statement said. “When Chad attacked me, he first sat on top of me, choked me, stuffed his fingers down my throat and covered my nose and mouth with his hands. I begged him to stop. When I tried to get away, he broke and dislocated my arm. When I came to, he strangled me again, rendering me unconscious a second time.
“When I awoke a second time — covered in my own blood — he said, ‘Wow, you’re alive.’ When I locked myself in the bathroom to call the police, I could hear him speaking coolly to his father over the phone. Chad never called the police even though he thought I was dead.
“Now, Chad is out of custody staying in a hotel watching this play out on social media. This current status places my safety at risk, and I do not believe that a protective order or a condition of release is sufficient to keep me safe.”
Wheeler is represented in the case by Bellevue-based defense attorney Diego Vargas. They asked the court on Monday to allow Wheeler to return to his offseason home in Hawaii.
The alleged victim was particularly against that.
“My first request is that you hold Chad in custody in the King County jail and that he is not released,” the alleged victim’s statement said. “If the Court will not do this, then I ask that he be required to serve his time on closely monitored (24/7) home detention at his family home in Los Angeles. I object to him serving his time in Seattle, which places me at risk.
“I also object to him serving his time essentially on vacation in Hawaii. He and I were supposed to be on vacation together at that location. Instead, I am here, undergoing medical treatment, handling a barrage of attention and abuse on social media, and dealing with the ramifications of this horrific attack. Permitting Chad to serve his time in Hawaii under these circumstances is not acceptable.
“Thank you for taking the time to hear from me.”
King County Superior Court Judge Tanya Thorp then ordered Wheeler to remain in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties while on GPS-monitored electronic home detention. Judge Thorp also kept Wheeler’s bail at $400,000, the amount set by a judge at Wheeler’s first court appearance last week.
‘I am truly ashamed’
Wheeler wrote on his Twitter account Wednesday:
“Events happened over the weekend that transpired from a manic episode. I am deeply sorry for the pain and suffering that I have caused ... . I apologize profusely for the turmoil that I have caused to my family, teammates, fans and those closest to me. The most important thing right now is that (the victim) gets the care she needs and I get help. Both are happening. It is time for me to walk away from football and get the help I need to never again pose a threat to another. I cannot express my sorrow or remorse enough. I am truly ashamed.”
According to charging documents, Wheeler’s 5-foot-9, 145-pound girlfriend told Kent police officers she and Wheeler had been dating for about six months. The alleged victim stated she was aware Wheeler suffers from bipolar disorder “and is medicated but has not been taking his medication recently.”
The woman stated Wheeler had “a manic episode” the evening of Jan. 22. She told police, per a Kent police report, that the 6-foot-7, 310-pound offensive lineman “snapped into a dark place” and commanded her to “stand up and bow to him. When she refused, he grabbed her by the neck and threw her on the bed.”
The police report states Wheeler “strangled (her) with both his hands for some time.” The report states Wheeler then took one hand and “crushed it against (the woman’s) nose and mouth trying to stop her from breathing as he continued to strangle her with his other hand.”
The woman reported Wheeler held her down on the bed and caused her lose consciousness.
The alleged victim reported after she came to and Wheeler stated his surprise she was still alive, she ran to the bathroom, locked the door then called family, friends and 911. A Kent police report states Wheeler eventually picked the lock on the bathroom door and began “apologizing profusely.” Officers arrived shortly after that. An officer took photographs of the woman and noted her neck had “noticeable” finger marks on it and that her left elbow was “obviously swollen and deformed compared to her right arm.”
A medical examination that night found the alleged victim had a broken arm.
An arriving officer reported asking the woman if she thought she was going to die.
“I thought I already had,” she told the officer.
The Seahawks released an extraordinary statement Wednesday to “strongly condemn” Wheeler and to emphasize they had cut ties with him. The team let his contract expire at the end of the 2020, during which he played in five games.
“We encourage Chad to get the help he needs,” the Seahawks’ statement said, in part.
The team’s statement included urging anyone experiencing domestic assault to call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or to go online to thehotline.org. All calls are free and confidential. The team noted the hotline is available all day every day in more than 170 languages.
What’s next
To reinforce they are done with him, the Seahawks placed Wheeler on league waivers. That absolves the team of even the option to not tender a restricted free-agent contract offer to him, which Seattle wasn’t going to do, anyway.
He went unclaimed on NFL waivers last week. He is thus a free agent, out of the league, at least for now. The NFL has the right to suspend him under the league’s personal-conduct policy and will investigate whether to do so.
Wheeler’s next court date is a case-setting hearing scheduled for 1 p.m. Feb. 11 at the Maleng Regional Justice Center.
The standard sentencing range, if the case gets to that, for first-degree domestic violence assault is 93-123 months. If the defendant is also convicted of unlawful imprisonment, the first-degree domestic violence assault standard range increases to 111-147 months. That is all according to a spokesman for the King County prosecuting attorney’s office.
So Wheeler could be facing about eight to 10 years in prison, or more.
This story was originally published February 1, 2021 at 4:31 PM.
